Kollin Kahler’s celebrity among defenders across the state reached its apex this season.

The Waco High senior got a taste of how high his stock rose in the Lions’ playoff opener against Jacksonville.

“When we went out there, they said ‘Mark Kollin and get Jacob (Davis),’” Kahler said. “We had never met this team before in our life, and everywhere I went the defender would go.

Kollin Kahler terrorized opponents with 45 goals this season.
Jerry Larson/Waco Tribune-Herald

“It was kind of freaky. They knew our names.”

In Kahler’s case, he earned the reputation.

Kahler’s heavy shot, 4.49 speed and 108 career goals earned him esteem statewide as a feared forward.

It’s because of that multifaceted skill set that Kahler earned his second straight Super Centex Player of the Year honor this season.

“The kid has a cannon on him like I’ve never seen,” said Kris Kahler, Kollin’s older brother and his coach at Waco High for the past three seasons. “It goes back to when Kollin was a freshman and we had a different coach, and he told me Kollin was going to be a hell of a soccer player one day because of his ability to finish. He did it.”

Since he was little, Kollin’s leaden right foot inspired fear.

He broke windows and flower pots in his backyard as a tot, and he broke an unlucky defender’s forearm in a select soccer game years later. Merely feinting a shot as he closed in on goal often caused defenders, even goalkeepers, to flinch.

“The power in my leg, I have no idea where I get it from,” Kollin said. “I guess I just maintain it with punting. I’ve never really done weights, so I guess it’s just a lot of running and kicking.”

The immediate fear of his shot may have waned as the competition got better, but it’s still as hard as ever to stop.

He scored a career-best 45 goals this season, provided 18 assists and guided the 17-4 Lions into the third round of the playoffs. He did it with a three-goal performance against prepared Jacksonville in the area round, cementing the best postseason run in team history.

He finished his career with record-breaking numbers. He never received a yellow card and sported a 100 percent average on his litany of penalty kicks. Kollin played in 45 games over the past two seasons and failed to score in just three of them.

“My speed helps out a lot,” Kollin said. “If you have a good shot but don’t have any speed, they kind of feed off each other. I’d rather be fast with no shot than have a wonderful shot and be the slowest person on the field.”

For Kollin, working under his brother was all business. The conversations at home rarely jumped to soccer, and family squabbles never made it to the field. The duo have been a player-coach tandem since Kollin was 3, so by his senior year the arrangement was well understood. That did not, however, make it an easy one.

“I’m glad Kollin’s gone,” Kris said. “Anybody that says it’s easy coaching your relatives is a liar. Coaching him is the hardest thing that I’ve ever done. I’m not glad its over, but I’m glad he’s going to college.”

Coach of the Year: Mike Chapman, University

No one can accuse Mike Chapman of harboring a slack work ethic, especially not this year.

Chapman’s been a mainstay as the head of the University boys’ program for 18 years, but he was forced to coach the girls’ team as well for the first time this season.

He made it a point throughout the year that his added responsibilities wouldn’t detract from his post with the boys’ team. He made good on his promise in 2010.

Chapman guided the Trojans to a 23-2 mark and into the regional finals, the best postseason run in school history.

He is this year’s Super Centex boys’ Coach of the Year, his third selection and first since 2005.

Chapman played the role of master craftsman, shaping this year’s team into a squad worthy of the state’s best teams. The Trojans’ massive junior class drove University through a one-loss regular season and a District 33-4A title. In the regional finals, a 15-minute lapse cost the Trojans a trip to the state finals in a 4-2 defeat to Kingwood Park.

“At the very start of the year, we tell them all, ‘We’re fixing to be together an awful lot until the end of the season,’” Chapman said. “We work on and do activities that help bring the team together. That’s one of the most important things to me is to have that camaraderie and that family-type atmosphere.”

Newcomer of the Year: Ben Diaz, Waco High

It typically takes freshmen a good while to earn the trust of their teammates, let alone a positive nickname.

It didn’t even take Waco High freshman Ben Diaz an entire year.

The “freshman sensation,” so named by coach Kris Kahler, did plenty to live up to his moniker this season, and he’s this year’s Super Centex boys’ Newcomer of the Year.

“I felt like I was older, with all the seniors we had on the team,” Diaz said. “It felt good.”

Diaz had one of the most prolific freshman seasons for a Lion midfielder in recent memory. He tallied 16 goals and 13 assists this season and started every game at left outside midfielder.

“We had a situation where he got hurt in the Belton game, and he came out, and I definitely noticed we were down,” Kahler said. “That’s when I said, ‘He’s going to have to stay in.’ Some of my seniors on the bench were like, ‘Coach, he’s tired.’ And I said, ‘I know. I don’t care, he’s going to have to get through this.’”

Diaz struggled through conditioning issues at first — an understandable malady for a freshman used to playing up top — but he caught on quick. He played on the left side and fed left forward Kollin Kahler all season. Not a bad tutor for a freshman looking to make a quick name.

The “freshman sensation” had no problem doing that.

wparchman@wacotrib.com

757-5711

2010 Super Centex Boys’ Soccer Team

Player of the Year: Kollin Kahler, Waco High

Newcomer of the Year: Ben Diaz, Waco High

Coach of the Year: Mike Chapman, University

KOLLIN KAHLER

Forward

Waco High

Scored 45 goals, bringing high school tally to 108 — first Lions player to reach that summit.

DAN ESCOBEDO

Forward

University

Trojans’ attack hammer thumped home 30 goals and had 10 assists in breakout junior season.

TYLER GIBSON

Forward

Temple

Athletic forward has speed to burn, and had 33 goals and 15 assists as District 12-5A MVP.

TAYRON MARTIN

Forward

Belton

Earned district offensive MVP honors with 35 goals and 15 assists, leading a salty attack into playoffs.

RICARDO CAZARES

Midfielder

University

Was the Trojans’ senior field general, scoring 25 goals along with 20 assists for regional final team.

RYAN CORTINAS

Goalkeeper

Midway

Two-year letterman supported 16 shutouts in 25 games, including four of five games in the playoffs.

BEN DIAZ

Midfielder

Waco High

Super Centex Newcomer of the Year had 16 goals and 13 assists for high-flying Lions as a freshman.

JOSH SAMPSON

Midfielder

Lorena

Deadly efficient in the middle, Sampson’s tireless work ethic led to 20 goals and 16 assists as a senior.

PHIL PILLERS

Midfielder

Midway

Senior was Midway’s dead ball specialist and key leader, guiding team into regional semis.

CAMERON DORSETT

Defender

Midway

Reliable defender was the heart of Midway’s back line, which allowed 13 goals in 25 games.

OSVALDO ZUNIGA

Defender

University

Last year’s Newcomer of the Year anchored defense that allowed just four district goals.

DILLON DARR

Defender

Belton

District 12-5A defensive MVP was key stop-gap and attacking defender, with nine goals and 12 assists.

Honorable Mention: Jose Fajardo, Eddy Gonzalez, Peter Zuniga, Nathan Rusu, Hermillo Frias and Gonzolo Garcia, La Vega; Angel Hernandez, Jacob Woytek and Tim Williams, Belton; Garrett Walsingham and Angelo Farrow, Temple; Chavis Colliver and Jose Herrera, Midway; Jacob Davis, Waco High; Uriel Cienfuegos and Arnold Martinez, University.

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